


tomorrow i want to protect you

by nagase (machogwapito)



Category: Japanese Actor RPF, Johnny's Entertainment, TOKIO
Genre: Fluff, M/M, Pre-Slash, Young Love, and more useless stuff..., leading into eventual slash
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-03-15
Updated: 2015-03-15
Packaged: 2018-03-18 00:17:41
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,212
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3548966
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/machogwapito/pseuds/nagase
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>
  <em>more tomorrow than now,</em>
  <br/>
  <em>in this ever-changing world</em>
  <br/>
  <em>i want to keep loving you</em>
</p><p>Masahiro is unwittingly designated the position of Tomoya Nagase's babysitter. Of sorts.</p>
            </blockquote>





	tomorrow i want to protect you

**Author's Note:**

> I asked for MaboNaga fluff prompts and [cathisbetterthanyou](http://cathisbetterthanyou.tumblr.com) delivered. Her words were "cooking together! watching a movie! sharing ice cream! adopting a pet! taking care of the other when they're sick! forehead kisses!" but I combined everything instead of writing little drabbles. Oops.

Masahiro is 400% convinced that Tomoya can't live on his own. Granted, it's not like they've got much to live up to just yet--they're only seventeen and fifteen, what else are they expected to do besides be helpless?--but it always makes him sigh. God knows what it is that'd overcome him to get him feeling responsible for Tomoya's airheadedness, but these days he's found himself worrying more over Tomoya's well-being than his own.

The bothersome thing is that he really isn't sure whether he's angry about it or not.

* * *

When he sees Tomoya's packed lunch consisting of instant noodles and a big bag of potato chips for the fourth day in a row, Masahiro thinks that perhaps his vocalist is going to die because of it. Every crunch of the chip, every unsavoury slurp of noodles and the droplets that some from his messy way of eating... Masahiro's barely able to contain his sigh. More than the unattractive way Tomoya presents himself, eating garbage like that everyday is no way to live.

Though Masahiro offers his omelette-topped rice in the hopes Tomoya would discard his junkfood, Tomoya misreads him so blatantly Masahiro wonders if he does it on purpose.

He watches in thinly-veiled horror as Tomoya crushes his potato chips and tops the omelette with it. He also watches as Tomoya happily eats everything with gusto and cheers about how _good_ Masahiro cooks, as if the flavour hadn't been totally destroyed by the chips he'd added to the meal. In some form of final insult, Tomoya even washes the whole thing down with large gulps of his cup ramen while Masahiro tries not to cringe.

It's Masahiro's idea to teach Tomoya how to cook the next day. They live in the same dormitory, anyway, so it isn't too out of the way of his usual routine. The expected time for Tomoya to be by his side is at six in the morning so they can cook and then leave for practise, but Masahiro isn't surprised when the idiot comes over twenty minutes late with a serious case of bedhead and his shorts on backwards.

Though he gives Tomoya a good smack on the head for it, Tomoya only winces once before managing a sheepish laugh and a promise he won't do it again. Masahiro sighs because he knows he can't stay mad at him.

There's something both interesting and worrying about Tomoya's ineptitude in the kitchen. He fails to crack an egg twice before Masahiro finally puts his hand over Tomoya's to help him find the right amount of pressure. More than that, he very nearly puts an entire tablespoon of soy sauce in their bowl of eggs instead of a teaspoon. With anyone else, Masahiro would suspect deliberate sabotage, but seeing Tomoya's intense gaze as he squats in front of the water dispenser and fills a measuring cup tells him that Tomoya really _is_ trying his best.

It's this that has him thumping his hand on Tomoya's upper back when he pours the right amount of water in, a 'you're doing fine' escaping his lips.

Like some kind of automatic reaction, Tomoya's entire frame seems to relax, and for a moment Masahiro detests the fact that Tomoya's hair is long enough to hide his face from where he stands.

The feeling passes, however, and they finish making breakfast with all of their limbs intact. Two bentos rest on the table, and Masahiro has to smack Tomoya's hand to keep him from eating it immediately.

It's for lunch. He tries to stress that.

Regardless, Masahiro has to remind Tomoya of that for the rest of the morning.

* * *

Masahiro's never been good at babysitting. He usually doesn't have enough patience for most people his age group--much more _children_.

Today, though, Yamaguchi wants to watch an R-18 rated horror film, and with Joshima and Taichi tagging along, Masahiro doesn't really have a choice in the matter. It would be fine if Tomoya hadn't overheard--if _fifteen year old Tomoya_ hadn't overheard--and the excited way he'd looked at all of them had the entire band hard-pressed to say 'no'.

That's why Masahiro's standing at Tomoya's doorway and watching in disbelief as he struggles to tie his shoelaces.

Whatever Tomoya might've thought when he bought the sneakers in the first place is beyond Masahiro's realm of knowledge. He comes forward all the same, though, and drops to one knee so he can tie Tomoya's shoes for him. He does it slowly at first, just to be sure Tomoya could figure it out by watching, but when he gestures for Tomoya to mirror the act on his other foot, his brow twitches as Tomoya offers him what Masahiro now believes to be a trademark crooked smile.

They add maybe five more minutes to their total travel time because of this short diversion, but the rest of TOKIO waits patiently at the entrance of the dormitory while Masahiro grunts about Tomoya having to be presentable. It involves some hairgel and some quiet jealousy at the texture of Tomoya's hair, but when they finally meet up with the older members, Tomoya's finally at a level that Masahiro thinks is acceptable to be seen with.

The walk to the theatre isn't far. Tomoya immediately strays over to Taichi and chatters with him about practise that day, while Yamaguchi and Joshima walk by Masahiro's side. The three of them silently lament as Tomoya lets out a loud, guffawing laugh that exposes enough of his crooked teeth. In a moment of psychic correlation, they wonder if he'll be let into the theatre at all.

As it turns out, it isn't getting into the theatre that's the issue. Thankfully. Tomoya gets in and he plops down into his seat and he squirms on instinct--so much so that Masahiro has to put a hand on his head and push down to get Tomoya to stop. All five of them sit, but Masahiro finds himself watching with a blank enough face in his apathy.

Sidelong glances tell him that the rest of his group seem to be aptly transfixed; apparently demonic possession is interesting, and from the little gasps that come from Tomoya and Joshima's lips, it's fairly scary, too. Masahiro himself doesn't see how it could be as interesting as they make it look, but he swallows his comments down and returns his gaze to the screen instead.

Which is a mistake.

Almost immediately a giant snake shoots out towards the direction of the audience, and Masahiro lets out a scream he isn't entirely proud of before he stands up and runs out of the theatre.

In his haste he doesn't notice the footsteps that follow his own (nor did he notice the scream that'd joined his), but after he exits and tries to catch his breath with his hand against the wall, a pair of arms wrap around him from behind while a face presses into his upper back.

Masahiro's first instinct is to scream a second time, but he hears Tomoya's hushed 'that was so _scary_ , senpai'.

The feel of Tomoya's little heart thumping against his back has Masahiro reeling. Forgetting the fact that it seems to match his own heartbeat, he nods his head and tries to make his voice sound steadier than he feels. Hushed words of comfort about how it isn't real don't seem to help (though Masahiro finds himself wondering if he's saying them for his own sake or Tomoya's), but when he promises to buy Tomoya some ice cream, he finally feels those trembling arms let him go.

They sit on the sidewalk with cones of strawberry ice cream, waiting patiently for the other three to exit the theatre when the film ends. Tomoya doesn't eat his ice cream fast enough, and Masahiro has to ask for tissues so he can wipe those sticky fingers down. Tomoya apologises, but Masahiro doesn't feel irritated enough to simply ignore it. He tells Tomoya not to worry and to finish his cone. Tomoya's all too happy to oblige.

When Joshima, Yamaguchi, and Taichi finally come out, Tomoya pipes up first and apologises sheepishly for leaving in the middle of the film. Masahiro does the same, but he doesn't look nearly as guilty about it.

It's on the walk back to the dorms that he wonders whether Tomoya'd truly been afraid of it, or if he'd simply run out because Masahiro did--because he didn't want to leave Masahiro alone.

He decides that a kid who can't tie his own laces isn't mature enough for a decision like that, and he walks Tomoya to his room before telling him 'good night' and going to his own.

* * *

Masahiro isn't sure how Tomoya talked him into this, but a labrador retriever pup is squirming in his arms.

Tomoya asks him little questions like 'what sounds better' or 'is this the right kanji' or 'I have to use polite language if we're giving this to our landlady, right?', and Masahiro's responses are always delayed because the dog is licking his shoulder and his neck and he's not quite sure how to deal with this breach in privacy.

A few weeks ago Tomoya mentioned how much he wanted a dog. It was a bad idea as far as Masahiro could remember--the last time they let Tomoya have pets, they'd been a bunch of fish that died in one day because he forgot to feed them. Needless to say, a repeat offence isn't something anyone's excited to see: much more now that the living thing Tomoya could possibly kill is a cute puppy like the one that's currently trying to reach Masahiro's brain through his ear.

Come the end of their brainstorming (which is really just the product of Tomoya kicking Masahiro's door open and sitting on his bed without permission with a dog), Tomoya has a rough draft for a permission letter ready, and Masahiro isn't surprised when it's pushed into his hands and a request to proofread it is given.

Now, Tomoya isn't completely hopeless. He included the fact that the pup was picked up off the streets, included the fact that nobody in the dorms was allergic to dogs (as far as he'd interviewed), and even went so far as to say that he's trained dogs before and would be able to discipline this one. Masahiro looks at him for a moment after he reads that bit out loud, and the way Tomoya smiles and sheepishly adds, 'with a little help from Matsuoka-kun' has him actually cracking a smile in return instead of get angry.

Amidst some quiet mention that Tomoya's hopeless without him, Tomoya only laughs and sits a little closer, taking the puppy from Masahiro's lap and petting her. A few moments later, Tomoya's cheek thumps onto Masahiro's shoulder, and he doesn't have the heart to push him away.

Masahiro takes the pen Tomoya used to write and a new sheet of paper. Then he rewrites most of the message, adding in some new details: that no, the puppy hasn't had its shots. Yes, they intend to take her. All medical expenses, now that TOKIO is a debuted band with earnings, will be their responsibility. Tomoya makes some off-handed comment about how good at being responsible Masahiro is. Masahiro finds himself resisting the urge to say 'that's your fault'.

Immediately after the letter is finished, Tomoya rushes to the landlady's room--all gangly limbs and a headstrong rush of excitement. Masahiro can barely keep up, though he notices how much taller Tomoya's gotten since they first met.

Though it takes some arguing, eventually they're given the permission they need. Tomoya grins, bright and ethereal and enough for Mashairo to look away, and after they give their thank yous and leave the room, Tomoya's kissing the puppy on the nose and wearing the sun on his face.

He says he's going to name her 'Liv', and at Masahiro's questioning, he says 'Liv Tyler'.

Tomoya's mind is a mystery all on its own, but Masahiro can't deny the fondness that wells up in him when the puppy's put down and Tomoya starts to chase it in some version of playtime. Liv barks and pants and makes a hell of a lot of noise along with Tomoya's breathless laughter, but Masahiro doesn't feel the urge to stop them and get them to quiet down like he thinks he should.

Their landlady yells at them from her room to be quiet before she changes her mind about the dog, though. The corners of Masahiro's eyes crinkle when Tomoya immediately pulls Liv to his chest defensively and looks like he'd been shot in the knee.

Masahiro ends up having to be the one to potty train her and give her baths, but a few months after Liv's become part of their lives permanently, Tomoya learns how to do his fair share of chores, too.

* * *

Liv's tongue is wet and cold against his cheek.

It's weird, actually. Usually she's warm, but even her furry little body doesn't give the same amount of warm comfort it usually does. Masahiro supposes that has something to do with the fever. He also supposes that when she flinches away and starts barking after he sneezes, that's the fever's fault, too.

He's not used to being useless. Oh, yes--Masahiro's gotten _some_ things done. For example, he's reached his quota for brooding, which ought to be some kind of feat in itself. Breakfast, however, is basically impossible when he can't even get to his feet. So is showering. So is simply getting out of bed and changing out of his pyjamas.

How did Liv get into the room, anyway? Masahiro finds himself questioning the entire thing a few minutes too late. As if in direct answer, his door creaks open, and he's greeted to one of the most out of place sights he's ever seen in his entire life.

Tomoya wanders in with his fingers curled around a tray, and he offers Masahiro a big smile and tells him that he made him soup.

He starts fearing for his life when Tomoya sits on his bed and shows him he'd even brought a spoon and everything--and a huge jug full of water for hydration purposes.

It's not that Masahiro doesn't have faith in him. It's just that... he doesn't have faith in him. The way Tomoya stirs the soup and then takes up a spoonful and blows it has Masahiro reeling back a little in how _bizarre_ it is. It's only after his tenth spoonful (and the realisation that it actually doesn't taste half-bad) that he realises he's unnerved because the roles are often reversed.

Tomoya's a little more like Liv in situations like these in the sense that he should be chasing his own tail on the floor just like she is. Instead, Masahiro opens his mouth and feels a spoon pass between his lips to dump vegetables and noodles onto his tongue and down his throat. Tomoya's gentle about it, too--different from the gung-ho ball of energy he usually is. The attention to detail he displays is something Masahiro hasn't seen on him in the years they've known each other, and when the soup is all gone and Tomoya dabs at Masahiro's lips with a tissue, Masahiro starts to wonder if he's being faced with an imposter.

After the matter of food is over and done with, Tomoya doesn't hesitate to give Masahiro a tablet to wash down with his water. Masahiro checks it and everything and it's the right medicine, and he furrows his brows again before gulping it down.

The next few minutes are embarrassing. Having Tomoya take him to the bathroom and sit him down on a stool so he can wash him is something Masahiro never expected to happen. Though memories of instances just like this flash into Masahiro's mind--instances where Tomoya's the one with a fever--it doesn't seem to comfort him with the change in the least.

Masahiro washes between his legs and stares at the shower tile while he tries to make some sense to the disjointed aura about everything. He gets interrupted because Tomoya dumps water over his head.

Once he's dried and dressed up, he's put back to bed. Masahiro opens his mouth, intending to say something in relation to a thermometre, but he's interrupted when Tomoya bends down and touches his lips to his forehead.

This... is something Masahiro's never done for him. But the action is comforting for more reasons than the fact that Tomoya's lips are a cool relief against his flushed skin.

Masahiro'll admit that the wet towel over his forehead is more relieving than a kiss, though. Or at least he would if he didn't end up passing out almost immediately after that development in his weakness.

Something else Masahiro knows he's never done before is waking up in the middle of the night with a ball of fluff against his back and a chest full of Tomoya's face.

Just like the kiss, this is fine, too.

* * *

Tomoya still doesn't know how to make breakfast. Though the fondness is there--has been there for a while shamelessly, Masahiro supposes--seeing the young man struggle to whisk eggs and vegetables has him wondering how it is Tomoya's made it this far. When he comes up to Tomoya's side and steals the bowl and whisk from him to do things perfectly (as they should be), Tomoya pouts and leans his hip against the counter. Masahiro makes an effort not to look at him in the fear that Tomoya's looking at him the way Liv does when she wants to play.

He pours the eggs into the frying pan and sets to work folding the omelette, and when Tomoya comes up to stand beside him, Masahiro finds himself unable to resist sparing a glance.

He's thrown off not by the fact that Tomoya's watching the pan intently instead of giving him the puppy dog eyes, but by the fact that Tomoya's taller than him, now.

When did that happen?

Breakfast is finished, however, and they set to work on getting ready to leave for practise. Tomoya gives Liv a big kiss on the snout and promises they'll be home soon, and Masahiro watches as she trots over into Masahiro's room and closes the door with her hind leg. She's Tomoya's dog, legally speaking, but in the same sense that Tomoya no longer stays in his room, neither does Liv.

Masahiro wonders when his life had come to this point, but he decides it doesn't matter when Tomoya takes his hand while they walk to their building.

Tomoya makes some quip about how cold Masahiro's fingers had been. Masahiro counters with a suggestion that he'd just been waiting for Tomoya to take his hand and warm it up, is all.

Teasingly, Tomoya says something about being 400% sure Masahiro wouldn't be able to survive without him.

Despite the irony of it all, Masahiro only tightens his grip on Tomoya's fingers. He doesn't even flinch away when Tomoya leans in to give him a tiny kiss of affection, public displays of it be damned.

Masahiro's never really been angry with him, anyway.


End file.
